PMC struggles to handle trash crisis
With the city’s largest garbage processing plant at Uruli Devachi depot being under up-gradation, garbage is mounting up in the city in a fast pace. Post the Ganapati festival, the generation of wastes has increased to more than about 1,600 tonnes, out of which only 1000 metric tonne is being lifted. The garbage collection system is out of gear and is functioning at less than half its optimal capacity.
For the last couple of months, in the absence of a proper dumping lot, the civic body has been dumping wastes in the open at the depot. The plant has been processing only about 500 MT, from the 1,000 to 1,200 metric tonnes of wastes that is unloaded in the depot. As a result, the city is stinking to a large extent with garbage cans overflowing to the walkaways. Daily garbage collection has been stopped in the city, resulting in huge amount of spill overs on the streets. Garbage bins installed across the city are also overflowing.
PMC’s Dirt-Check Mechanism
PMC‘s Dirt-Check Mechanism includes about 3500 road sweepers and about 1400 containers to lift the garbage. In addition to about 600 helpers, around 200 drivers are deployed by the PCMC, each of whom make 7 to 10 trips in a day, to collect the waste.
Solid Waste Management in the city
As per the revised city development plan for Pune- 2041, the city of Pune generates about 1,374.3 Metric Tonne of solid waste per day. Waste collected from different parts of the city is transported to the landfill site, located at Devachi Uruli, which lies about 20km from the city.
Though disposal of the wastes in the city is carried out in the city in accordance to the MSW rules 2000, no proper strategy has been adopted for the disposal of C&D and e-waste. At present, such waste is disposed of at low-lying areas along the river.
As per the DP, the waste generation is estimated to increase to raise up to 5771 TPD by the year 2041. The sector vision statement is ‘to provide most cost effective and efficient solid waste collection and disposal service while providing maximum practical protection to environment with Zero waste city’. The same has been recommended in the CDP.
Measures adopted for ensuring the vision statement goals
Some of the measures that were planned to be adopted by the PMC, to ensure efficient waste collection and disposal were door to door collection, waste minimization, segregation of waste at source, recycle and reuse of waste and respect for the people who are providing this service in society. New technologies like autoclaving, hydroclaving, and microwaving for the treatment of Biodegradable Municipal Waste have also been suggested in the CDP. However, with the garbage processing plant at Uruli Devachi under repair, PMC seems to unable to work out these strategies in an efficient manner.
